Knowledge, Practices and Use of Contact Lenses Among University Students in Turkey.

Aim: This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of contact lens (CL) use among university students, their awareness on CL, and CL users' practices for the cleaning and care of CLs.

Methods: The data of this cross-sectional study were collected between April 2019 and July 2019. The sample consisted of university students who volunteered to participate in the study. The data obtained from the study were evaluated by Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) 22.0 package program in computer environment.

Results: 929 students participated in the study and the average age of them was 21.99±1.85 years (Min. 18 - Max. 24), and it was determined that 36.6% (n=340) of the participants were male, 10.2% (n=95) of the total were using CL, 91.6% (n=87) of them used CL due to visual impairment. When students' levels of knowledge about the hygiene and care in CL use were examined 85.4% (n=82) washed their hands before wearing/removing CL, 85.3% (n=81) cleaned the lens container and filled it with new solution when the solution in the container was reduced, 18.5% (n=17) continued wearing CL while sleeping, 6.5% (n=6) washed CL with tap water, and 28.3% (n=26) of them stated that they swam in the sea with CL. It was determined that the prevalence of CL use was higher (p= .045) among smoking students.

Conclusion: Health professionals are important in the trainings to be given to increase the students' knowledge of hygiene and care regarding the use of CL. More studies are needed on the effect of smoking status on CL use.